Gear Review: SOG Force Tactical Knife

The SOG Force Fixed Blade SE38-N knife is a formidable knife. With a blade thickness of .24 inches, it is hefty. In fact, it reminds me of the Ontario knives and machetes I have, but sports a super sharp AUS-8 blade. I really like thisknife, and it’s found a home on one of my tac vests as a combat knife for several reasons.

For starters – like I said – it’s a beast of a blade. It’s heavy, yet well balanced, and a great fighting knife in that regard. You know you have a weapon in your hand when you unsheathe it, but it is easily manipulated. The SOG Force Fixed Blade SE38-N knife can also fill the role of a survival knife, but we’ve reviewed plenty of knives that make great survival blades only.

This particular knife comes with a straight edge, but they do make ones that are partially serrated. This has their lovely TiNi finish, with a 6 inch clip point blade. The SOG Force Fixed Blade SE38-N knife also is full tang, with a glass reinforced nylon grip which has good texturing – in fact it’s pretty aggressive and I like that.

At 11.25 inches overall, the SOG Force Fixed Blade SE38-N knife a big knife, and has the weight to match at 10.25 ounces.

One of my favorite features of the blade though is the pommel – it’s a glass breaker on the back.

This will lend itself to a true tactical application in which you can break windows as easily as you can slice through whatever is in your way.

And this truly exemplifies how full they mean when they say full tang – it comes out of the back of the knife. It also, obviously, has a lanyard hole.

It comes with a sheath which isn’t great – but serviceable. It’s nylon with a whetstone/accessory pocket, in addition to having MOLLE compatibility on the back. You can also lace it to your gear with some paracord through the grommets, but as I said, this is MOLLE strapped to a plate carrier, ready to go when I need it.

The AUS-8 blade, full tang, glass breaker, and aggressive texturing on the handle make this knife a formidable tactical item. Couple that with nearly a quarter inch of steel to comprise the blade, backed by SOG’s Lifetime Warranty, and this knife is pretty badass. One of the most badass in my collection in fact.

PROS:
What we like is that the blade thickness and weight, innovative glass breaker, full tang, AUS-8 steel blade. Ideally this should be loaded out in a bugout bag, or in my opinion, on a tactical vest for combat ops.

CONS:
What we don’t like is the sheath leaves much to be desired, but for all it’s good, I’ll take that.

Update May 2017: This blade is outstanding, and holding up well to the toughest abuse. I have it on one of my plate carriers, and have worn it into the woods, and used it for hacking, stripping branches, and other camp chores. The finish is still flawless, and has not scuffed or scratched. The glass breaker is also very robust and I’ve used it to break up ice off of a canoe. Very well made, ready for action.

Related Articles:
Gear Review: Ontario SP-8 Survival Machete
Gear Review: SOG Survival Hawk
Gear Review: SOG SEAL Strike
Tabletop Gear Review: SOG Zoom S30V